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- Title
Beyond the bubble.
- Authors
Koed Madsen, Anders
- Abstract
Google is a powerful player in deciding how the world is represented to information-seeking citizens in a digitized knowledge-society. Eli Pariser has been influential in arguing that the company's algorithm leaves its users trapped in a biased 'filter bubble' in which information about the world is tailored to their preferences by algorithms. This paper proposes a shift in focus away from the metaphor of the 'bubble' when we try to understand how 'real world representations' are shaped by the dynamics of online visibility. Instead of a mono-causal focus on the algorithm, it suggests focusing on the distributed set of selection mechanisms that enable web users to navigate a world of 'big data'. The paper suggests a conceptual move from 'bubbles' to 'visions' to understand online visibility. It motivates this suggestion through three empirical analyses of the selection mechanisms involved in making the issue of synthetic biology visible to users of British Google from February 2011 - February 2012. The paper uses the findings of these analyses as a basis on which to suggest theoretical, empirical and practical implications for future studies on the impact of the digital on 'real world representation'.
- Subjects
SEARCH algorithms; SYNTHETIC biology; GOOGLE (Web resource)
- Publication
MedieKultur: Journal of Media & Communication Research, 2015, Vol 31, Issue 59, p6
- ISSN
1901-9726
- Publication type
Article